


Tall, Dark + Heavy Roasted

by TheElvesAlwaysStealTheShow



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Gen, Kylux - Freeform, M/M, New York City, kylux trash
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-28
Updated: 2016-10-01
Packaged: 2018-07-24 12:15:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7507930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheElvesAlwaysStealTheShow/pseuds/TheElvesAlwaysStealTheShow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Kylo, I didn’t know you were gay,” said the guy asking the question.<br/>“I’m not...” He answered.<br/>"No, he just bats for both teams,” said Rey from behind the counter.  </p><p>When Hux had decided to duck into that cafe, he did it out of convenience, not realizing the impact that it would make on his life. Who knew that a cup of coffee could be such an icebreaker?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One-Hundred and Ten Percent Chance of Rain

  
                                      

                     

**Friday | 8:42M.**  
     Rain was pouring down in sheets. The only color to be found was the yellow of the countless cabs driving by, and the reflection of thousands of neon lights in the puddles. The sun was nowhere to be found. Hidden behind deep grey clouds, it seemed more like 5 a.m. than 9 a.m., and it showed no signs of breaking up. Hux was running behind, and more than normal for his punctual habits, but he wouldn't subject himself to go a Monday morning without a cup of coffee.  
    In his rushing about, he had passed by his normal coffee stop and was now trying to remember if there were any between his current location and his office. He thought he remembered there being one, one that his friends had referred to as the “hipster hangout”. It was considered one of those places where the coffee elitists went to boast about their knowledge of all things coffee. Hux didn’t consider himself a connoisseur of coffee, but he did know a thing or two about a good cup of Joe.  
    The GPS said he was only a couple blocks from Devocíon, and it was a good thing, as the wind was starting to pick up, making the constant rain even worse. As Hux turned onto the street the coffee shop was on, a car sped past and hit a pothole, sending a considerable amount of water onto his right side. If only he had been a little bit quicker, Hux might have avoided that unfortunate event. Nonetheless, he was at his destination, nothing he could do about it now.  
    Devocíon was just as warm as it looked, which was comforting to Hux, as he was drenched from the walk from his apartment to here. A few people looked up when he entered, but he paid them no attention. Stashing his umbrella in the caddy by the door, Hux ran a hand through his stringy, wet hair as he skimmed the menu. Behind the counter were two employees, considerable younger than himself. They greeted him with a smile despite his less than professional appearance.    
    “Good morning. Can I help you?”  
    “Yes, can I get a doubleshot pour over?”  
    “Sure! For here or to go?” She asked him. Hux looked at his phone and couldn’t believe the time. He was going to be late.     
    “Go ahead and make it for here.”          “Okay, Hux... Wow, is that really your name?” Said the girl, looking at his debit card for a name to place on the order. This didn’t surprise Hux at all, as it was commons occurrence for people to be curious about his name. “Wow, sorry about that…” She took her eyes away from his, and scribbled something down on a ticket. “Just take a seat, and we’ll bring it out when it’s done!”

    Tucking his card back into his wallet, Hux found a quiet table, along the wall, and assessed the sad state of his messenger bag. The leather was discolored from the rain, but his laptop and papers inside were still dry.  
    Hux was a professor of Psychology at Brooklyn college, and was supposed to be at a faculty meeting this morning, but wasn’t going to be able to attend. It wasn’t something that was going to get him fired. He just simply liked to attend them and hear how his own department was stacking up against the others within the curriculum.  
    His first class wasn’t until 11 o’clock, so he was going to use his time wisely and grade  a series of research papers. With his computer booted up and the stack of reports beside him, he tried to get started, but his damp hair kept dripping droplets of water onto the plastic covers of the papers. For that he was thankful, but it just seemed like everything was working against him today. Again and again, Hux tried to push the hair behind his ears and again and again it just managed to work itself out. In the reflection of the laptop screen he saw himself and just sighed.  
    At about that same time, someone walked up beside him, and placed down his coffee. He looked up to thank whoever it was who had delivered it, and was almost unable to form coherent words. This wasn’t anyone he had seen when he had first walked in, because he would have noticed him. The guy was tall, noticeably tall even when sitting down. He seemed to have his attention elsewhere, because Hux had to slide the cup of coffee over to him, as it was teetering on the edge of the table. He stared longer than he probably should have, but there was something that kept his gaze held.  
    Most people, in Hux’s life, weren’t aware of his sexual orientation, and frankly, there weren’t many people in his social circles, in the first place. He had been out of the dating scene for quite some time, on account of several bad runs. Particularly, he gravitated toward more men than women. The relationships he had had with women had been horrific, and more times than not, he ended up finding out that his partner had not been faithful.  
“Okay, hottest member of Game of Thrones?” Another customer said out-loud.  
    “Jon Snow,” said the man delivering Hux’s order. This caught him by surprise.  
    “Kylo, I didn’t know you were gay,” said the guy asking the question.  
    “I’m not...”  
    “No, he just bats for both teams,” said the female employee, from behind the counter.    
    “Very funny, Rey,” he replied with a smirk, and left Hux with not even an ‘enjoy’.  
    Kylo made his way back to the counter, and Rey rolled up a towel and smacked him with it. He grabbed the towel from her fingers and she scampered off to the back of the shop. The cafe wasn’t terribly busy and it showed by how the employees were acting: aloof and not that professional. Hux didn’t care about his service that much; he had gotten what he had ordered, in a timely fashion and to the standards he had expected.  
    “Really, Jon Snow, Kylo?”  
    “Yeah! What’s wrong with him?” Kylo said, leaning onto the counter with his elbows.  
    “I’m not into men, first thing.”  
    “Oh, come on! What's not to like?!"  
    “You just like him because he looks kind of like you!" replied the man with a grin.  
    “So, I have good taste in men, so what? Still doesn't answer my question as to why you don't like Jon. Sure, he's a good looking guy, but he's also calculating and knows how to handle a sword..." Kylo replied.  
    "You know nothing Jon Snow."  
    “Oh, speaking of Game of Thrones, what did you guys think about last night’s finale?” Finn asked.  
    “SHUT IT! Don’t you even go there! I haven’t been able to watch it yet!” said Rey in a frantic tone, coming from the kitchen.  
    “I’ll give you all my tips for the week if you spoil it for her.” Kylo said, throwing his arm over Finn’s shoulder.  
    Finn looked at Kylo with a raised brow. “You’re an evil son-of-a-bitch aren’t you?”  
    That smirk from Kylo’s lips was pure evil indeed as he answered “Yes” to Finn’s question.  
    “Make it 2 weeks and you have a deal.”  
    They shook hands on the deal and Finn just shook his head at the headache he knew he was going to incur at some point in the day. Through all of this, Hux stayed glued to his papers, only looking up when he heard Kylo’s voice, and even then, he was subtle about it. He knew he had more important things to do than daydream.

  

  
     Another hour passed, and Hux still found himself at Devocíon. The weather had managed to get worse, yet the cafe remained sparse. Still with his nose in his grading, Hux didn’t originally hear someone talking to him, until about the third or fourth his name was called out.  
    “Good morning, professor!” said a young woman, as she removed her glasses to wipe the raindrops from her lenses. “I’m shocked to see you here!”  
    “Hello, Sara.”  
    “Grading our research papers?” Hux could tell that she was trying to see where paper was in the stack. “Have you gotten to mine yet? I wrote about how certain techniques of therapy can have adverse reactions when used on the wrong type of brain disorder…”  
    “Sara, I’ll be posting grades on Wednesday. You’ll just have to wait like everyone else.”  
    “Of course! Of course! I’m sorry.” She laughed a nervous laugh, and excused herself to go order.  
    “You’re a professor?” Asked Rey as she had finished cleaning a table behind where Hux was sitting. “Sorry, I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop!”  
    Hux pulled his eyes away to look at Rey, who was standing beside him. He was disappointed in the papers he had graded and was getting close to failing the entire class. Any distraction to keep him from doing so was appreciated. “Yes, I teach Psychology at Columbia.”  
    “Columbia?! Wow, you’re part of the elite, aren’t you?"  
    "The same can't be said about my students. I think their acceptance into this school had to do with privilege parents, and not their intellectual prowess." Hux said, letting his pen fall from his hand.  Rey's eyes grew wide. She wasn't sure what she had walked into by speaking with this guy. Hux wasn't a regular; she didn't know him. She was beginning to regret bothering him.  
    "Oh, I'm sorry..." Her inflection was meek and soft. "Seems like you're having a rather off day... I'm sure we probably have some whiskey in the back of you'd like a shot in a fresh cup..." She winked, and the comment almost pulled a smirk to Hux's lips, but it stopped short.  
     "I'm accustomed to bad days. And the last thing I need is getting fired for having liquor on my breath, but I thank you."  
     "Let me now if you change your mind!" She took his dishes and let him get back to his work. By 10 o’clock, Hux was still there, on his fourth cup of coffee and still grading those miserable papers. The rain had finally stopped and more people were beginning to trickle in. A few more of his students had popped it, but didn’t speak to him about their grades. It was kind of like they knew that their professor knew that they had pulled everything out of their asses for this assignment. .  
    “So, I had an interview yesterday, and the woman asked me this question.” Hux overheard a man say in close proximity to him. “‘You’re walking in the woods and you happen across an animal. What kind of animal is it?’ I was like….’why the fuck are you asking me this?’”  
    “What did you choose? A unicorn?” Kylo asked.  
    “I said bear...because I thought that fit the scene.”  
    “It’s a question used to determine how you see problems, and their size.” Hux remarked, still thumbing through his work. “The size of the animal represents your perception of your own problems.”  
    “Well, James, sounds like you’ve got some inner shit to work out.” Kylo remarked sitting down with the guy. He looked over at Hux, just now taking a good look at the guy who had spoken earlier. That morning, since he hadn’t been paying attention, he had thought that the copper-haired individual had been a woman. Turns out he was completely wrong! He couldn’t seem to pull his eyes away from the man’s face, and apparently, Rey had noticed when she came along to top off Hux’s cup.  
    “Kylo, can you go help Finn? I think he’s having an issue with one of the grinders. And Mrs. Frederick will be here this afternoon to get that large order of hers from last week.”  
    “Y-Yeah, sure.” He replied pulling himself out of his daydream.”  
    “How are you doing?” Rey asked Hux with a nervous bite of her lip. She was accustomed to asking people how they were doing, but forgot that Hux was the type that kind of like to be left alone.  
    “Sorry! I don’t mean to keep bothering you!”  
    “It’s fine.” Hux said in his normal tone of voice. “What do I owe you for this?”  
    “Not worried about it!” She said as she left. Hux picked up the steaming up and took a quick scan of the room. Leaned up against the doorway that connected the cafe to the back was Kylo, lazily gazing at him.  
    “Did you help Finn already?” Rey said, once she got back behind the counter.  
    “He’s fine.”  
    “Who’s fine? Finn or Hux?”  
    “Who’s Hux?”  
    “Um, that long-haired Ginger you’re gawking at!” She said with a playful tap of his shoulder.  
    “Don’t call them that! It’s offensive!”  
    “What’s offensive?” said a regular at the counter. In their discussions about men and hair colors, both Kylo and Rey had been oblivious to the new customer waiting to be waited on.  
    “My sense of humor!” Kylo quickly replied.  
    “That’s for damn sure.” Rey said under her breath as she pushed past him, leaving Kylo to wait on the man. However, Kylo still couldn’t get Hux off his mind. Every spare moment he had, he would see if he was still sitting there, going through those papers. Hux never looked up, after seeing Kylo gaze at him earlier. Hux knew it was getting closer to when he needed to be leaving, if he was going to make it to class on time. He had already missed the meeting, the last thing he wanted today, was to be late for class. After powering down his laptop, he stacked everything back inside his messenger bag, left Rey a 10$ tip under the saucer and made his way back into the city air, not realizing that he had left his umbrella by the door.  
     Kylo, hadn't noticed Hux leave, and once he had, he wished that he had something like, "Have a nice day", or something along those lines, but he hadn't. NYC was a huge city, and Kylo had that sinking feeling that he might never see him again. He had to get back to work though. There was no way he was getting by with moping about over lost loves... Nor would he get any flack from his coworkers if they knew he was instantly smitten on some new customer. So, on with the day he went and tried his hardest to keep his mind off of other...things. It made for the longest of days.

 


	2. Welcoming

     "Would you just go home already? Lord, you've been here since 5 a.m., Kylo!"  
     It was true, he had been there since before sunrise, but he had agreed to work second shift, so one of the other employees could go to some concert downtown. Admittedly, he was tired, and since his manager was telling him to leave, he decided maybe it was time to clock out. He was tired and really dreading the long walk home. It was rare for him to take a cab, but after working a double...he was heavily considering it.  
     As he stood on the corner, there wasn't a cab in sight, and the wind was beginning to pick up. Waiting wasn't an option. He was just going to start walking now and hope that he saw one on his way. Quickly, he crossed the street and fell in line behind another man who was walking against the wind, with noting but a newspaper for a rain shield. Kylo's eyes narrowed in the dim light, like he was trying to see if he knew the person. It was the hair color. The orange lighting was making the copper hue look like a beacon in the evening's darkness, but it was too hard to tell if it was Kylo's new crush or not. It wasn't until something fell from the man's bag that he got the chance to find out.  
    Kylo wasted no time in picking up the folded papers, instantly made soggy by the puddle it fell into. He quickened his stride, calling out to point out the situation.  
    "Hey! Excuse me! I think you dropped something!"  
    The red-haired man stopped the moment he heard someone calling out to him. When he turned around, Kylo tried to hide his excitement that it was who he had hoped it was ahead of him. Hux's expression was a twisted mess of disgust and exhaustion, and Kylo quickly wondered if he had done something to cause it.  
    "Thank you." Hux said, taking the ruined papers, but unsure what to really do with them. In the mean time, the rain was making him look like a wet dog. He blinked through the incoming drops at Kylo, who was dry and shielded by an umbrella. Almost right on cue, Kylo quickly made room for Hux beneath it.  
    "Thanks." He said again, pulling wet strands of hair behind his ear before stashing the paper back into the bag.  
    "Not really the weather to be walking around without an umbrella," said Kylo with a playful smile.  
    "Yeah, well I had one this morning, and somehow I've misplaced it."  
    "Well, where are you headed?" This took Hux somewhat by surprise, and it took him a little longer to respond.  
    "I'm over on South 3rd, but what about you?"  
    "Station over on Metro Ave."  
    Hux thought for a quick moment before he answered. "That's the complete wrong direction. I'll don't have too much further to go."  
    "It's fine, really." Said Kylo with a bit of a pleading tone in his voice.  
    "I..."  
    "Just let me walk you, please."  
    Hux couldn't say anything to that. He just stood there perplexed until something hit him.  
    "You're coming off as a bit desperate."  
    "You have _no_ idea," Kylo said with a nervous laugh.

                                  

  
    The two quickly began their walk back to Hux's apartment as the wind and rain only picked up more with each block they passed. There were a couple times where cars nearly sent tidal waves of water crashing down on the two pedestrians, but they were able to get out of the way just in time. When they first set out, there was no conversation between them; they walked alone in awkward silence until Kylo, finally broke down and said something.  
    "Teaching a night class tonight?"  
    "I'm sorry?" Hux had been deep in thought and hadn't caught all that Kylo had said against the traffic of the city.  
    "Were you teaching a night class tonight? I mean it's past 8."  
    "Err, no."  
    "Sorry, wow..." Kylo was embarrassed that that was his ice breaker.  
    "It's alright. No, I missed a meeting this morning, and the Dean pretty much said that I had to review the minutes. Seems I lost track of quite a lot of time. What about you? You normally serve coffee till 8?"  
    Surprised that Hux was still willing to carry the conversation along, Kylo quickly replied. "Normally, no. I get there around 5, then leave after noon, but I offered to work a second shift today, and even then, I stayed an extra hour to get stuff ready for the crew that's working tomorrow." He felt like he was getting too excited to be having a conversation with this guy, and that he needed to dial it back... They turned onto South 3rd, and before they knew it, they were standing outside of Hux's apartment.  
    "Please, let me drive you home." Hux said.  
    "Of course not!" Kylo wasn't about to let Hux do anything of the sort.  
    "Metro Ave isn't that far--"  
    "I don't mind walking!"Kylo said, kind of cutting him off, though not really meaning to. At about that moment an incredibly loud crack of lightning struck nearby, changing Kylo's expression rather quickly.  
    "Okay, at least come inside until the lightning passes?"  
    "Think that's safe?" said Kylo with a playful arch of his brow. "You just met me."  
    "Pretty sure I know how to read people." Hux said crossing his arms.  
    "Ah-ha...true. Okay, fine. You win this round."  
    The doorman of Hux's apartment building opened the door for the two and it took Kylo by surprise. He hadn't been to a place like this before, where buildings actually had doormen! Just who was this guy after all?!  
    "Seriously?!"  
    "Seriously, what?" Hux asked hitting the call button on the elevator.  
    "I thought doormen at apartments were just something you saw in the movies." This made Hux actually laugh out loud. He shook his head with a smile as the door opened. "What?!"  
    Hus said nothing, just smiled. They stepped inside and watched as the floors ticked by until they reached the 12th floor. Once they opened again, Hux was first to step out. He unlocked the door and looked over his shoulder to see Kylo was still standing in the elevator.  
    "What are you doing?"  
    "I don't know." he said and stepped out. "Where are the other doors?  
    "I own the floor..."  
    "The entire floor?!" Kylo was shocked. "I have a feeling your closet is bigger than my entire apartment!"  
    "Welcome to NYC. Where two-thousand dollars gets you 100-square-feet a month... Trust me, I've been there, too."

    Upon entering, Hux flipped on the lights and laid his messenger bag on the coffee table. His apartment was dimly lit, but had a very inviting feel to it. It smelled of rich leather and aging books, and Kylo felt that it was the type of place that you only looked at, and never actually sat in. However, Hux didn't seem to think so.  
    "Make yourself at home. I'm going to go dry my hair." And with that, he excused himself to the bathroom.  
    Kylo lingered at the door for quite a while before removing his shoes and placing his wet umbrella outside the door. Quietly, he closed the door and tried to find something to preoccupy himself while Hux was away. One of the walls displayed countless frames, all bearing either diplomas or awards that Hux had been awarded over the years. Kylo just stood there in awe unable to comprehend how one person could be able to achieve so much. The sound of the blow dryer ceased, but Kylo kept on gazing. Because of that, he didn't hear Hux reenter the room.  
    "Find anything interesting?" Hux said. Kylo spun around, as if he had been caught doing something he shouldn't have been. Hux had changed clothes, and his hair was no longer wet and stringy. Kylo fought back a smile as best he could.   
    "Is there anything you can't do? I mean, ' _Distinguished Educator in Clinical Psychology',_ ' _Distinguished Student Research Award in Clinical Psychology'?_ I've lost count how many awards are here!"  
    "On that wall, 32...there are more plaques in my office..." Hux said, almost ashamed that he was bragging as he ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to boast."  
    "Boast away! I would! What made you choose psychology?"  
    Hux moved toward one of the couches in the room, and sat down. Kylo still seemed like a bull in a china shop. "My father was a 4-star general in the Air Force. He constantly struggled with PTSD and I hated seeing what it did to him. I wanted to help him and thought if I knew more about it, I might be able to. I took an AP psychology class in high school and soaked everything up like a sponge. I don't know, guess I just found my niche."  
    "I make lattes..."  
    "You could be doing worse."  
    "Yeah, you have a point."  
    The room fell silent just long enough for the alien sounds of Hux's empty stomach to make it's voice know. This, Kylo couldn't help but laugh it.  
    "Seems I forgot to eat lunch...  
    "And dinner, by the sounds of it," said Kylo.  
    "Yeah, I think you're right. There's a great Chinese place just around the corner. You hungry?"  
    "Yes!"

    "Okay, this place will be getting more of my business!"  
    "I think it already consists of about 75% of my diet. Have you seen this one?" Hux said, as they were flipping through countless documentaries on Netflix. While waiting on their food order, both Hux and Kylo found out that they shared a deep love for serial killer docs. Kylo was happy that he was starting to see Hux's casual side, and he was glad that he hadn't walked home after all. From time to time, during their killer marathon, Kylo would steal a glimpse of Hux. He wasn't shy about it; they locked eyes more than once. During one of his many times of doing this, Kylo noticed that Hux had nodded off. He looked so peaceful, and he took advantage and stared for as long as he felt comfortable. Eventually, he followed suit, and found himself fast asleep.

x x x x x

    Hux awoke with a gasp for air.  
    The sudden snap of lightning rudely brought him out of his slumber. The power had been off, as the TV was on it's blue screen. He sat up on the couch, and saw that Kylo was out cold. He smiled. Kylo smelt like coffee; he hadn't noticed it before, but it was comforting. Hux stood over him, and shook him gently on the shoulder. Once he stirred, he gave Kylo a moment to get his bearings.  
    "It's 2:30." Hux said. "Let me drive you home."  
    "I don't want too..." Kylo replied, burrowing his face back into the pillow.  
    "I have a guest room you're welcome to, unless you prefer the couch."  
    "Seriously?" Again, Kylo couldn't believe how welcoming Hux was.  
    "I wouldn't be offering if I wasn't serious. Come one. I don't need you drooling on those pillows."  
    Kylo laughed, and reluctantly pulled himself from the couch. He shuffled behind Hux couldn't wait to fall into the bed of the guest room. He thanked Hux for his hospitality repeatedly, saying that he didn't have to do any of what he had. Hux replied with the fact that he wouldn't do it for just anyone, and wish him a good night.  
    "Bathroom is at the end of the hall. If you need anything, I'm right across the way."  
    "Thanks." Kylo said with a yawn.  
    "The alarm will be set, so I wouldn't try the door in the morning. Just knock and I'll let you out if you want to leave." Kylo wasn't even considering leaving... He was still on Cloud 9. They said good night to one another. Hux carried on with his nightly routine, while Kylo stood with his back against the bedroom door. There was a smile across his face, as he just couldn't believe where the night had gone. It was made even better by the realization that he didn't have to work this weekend. He just hoped that Hux didn't have class. 

Save


End file.
